According to Conicet, the dinosaur Koleken inakayali is closely related to Carnotaurus, one of the most iconic “predators” from the Late Cretaceous period (approximately 69-71 million years ago) in South America.
On May 21, the National Scientific and Technical Research Council of Argentina (Conicet) announced that scientists in the country had discovered the fossil of a new species belonging to the Abelisaurid family of theropod dinosaurs at an archaeological site in the Chubut province of southern Argentina.
Technicians studying the fossils of the vertebrae and femur of Koleken. (Source: National Geographic).
This new dinosaur species has been named Koleken inakayali.
Researcher Diego Pol stated that “inakayali” derives from the name of a leader of the Tehuelche Indigenous people of South America.
Meanwhile, Koleken in the Tehuelche language means “from clay and water,” reflecting the fact that the sedimentary layer where the fossil remains were found is clay deposited at a river mouth 69 million years ago.
According to Conicet, the dinosaur Koleken inakayali is closely related to Carnotaurus, one of the most characteristic “predators” of the Late Cretaceous period (approximately 69-71 million years ago) in South America.
However, Koleken inakayali is smaller than Carnotaurus and lacks the horns on its skull.
Paleontologists discovered a partial vertebral column, along with several fossilized pieces of the skull, hips, tail, and legs of the dinosaur Koleken inakayali.
Conicet indicated that this discovery is an example of the diversity within the Abelisaurid theropod family on the former supercontinent Gondwana (which included Antarctica, South America, Africa, Madagascar, India, the Arabian Peninsula, Australia-New Guinea, and present-day New Zealand), and it holds significant importance for scientists to further understand the evolutionary processes of large predators coexisting in an ecosystem.
